🤑💸 Say goodbye to sales tax!

⚾ Annnnnnd the cute Red Sox ticket specials continue … A Joe Kelly jersey that says “baseball isn’t boring?” *adds to cart*

💅 Pssst! We have a mini vacay for you. We’re partnering with Baddie Besties Podcast to host The Pause Festival at The Cyclorama on Sept. 19. This is your *ultimate* self-care day with B/SPOKE classes, complimentary Drybar blowouts, VIP shopping with Kendra Scott and NOBULL, and more. Snag earlybird tickets here! 

👀 What’s on tap today:

Up first…

Good news for your wallet: No need to shell out that extra 6.25% on Aug. 8 and 9, ‘cause this weekend is the Mass. Sales Tax Holiday!!! Translation: No sales tax for (nearly) anything you buy up to $2,500. Seriously!

Here’s what to know:

🙋 It’s only for personal purchases, not business ones. So if they’re on the company card (or your own, but is still a business expense), those still get taxed. 

🍽️ And some everyday items still don’t count … Food, utilities, cellphone plans, and cars (also boats lol) aren’t part of the deal. Oh, and all booze, weed, and tobacco is also a no-go. Here’s the full list of exemptions.

💸 You’ll still get taxed if the price tag is $2,501 or higher. That’s ‘cause it won’t apply to individual items over $2,500. But you can buy as many things as you want — even if the total is over $2,500 — as long as *each item* is less than that max. It even applies to rentals of up to 30 days (minus cars and boats, still) as long as you pay in full that weekend.

👚 Wanna ball out on a new wardrobe? Fun fact: Clothes are already not taxed unless they’re over $175. But thanks to this weekend, you can get any piece between $176 and $2,500 tax free (Covet’s luxury rack might be calling our name). And if you end up buying something above the cap, normal rules apply: You won’t get taxed on the first $175. 

💻 Online shoppers can also get in on the fun! We’re talkin’ Amazon, Etsy, all of it. As long as you bought the eligible item between Aug. 8-9, you’re good. Even if it won’t deliver until after. 

🤑 Have more Qs? Read all the deets here.

🍕🍣 Respectfully … it's time to stop going to the same three restaurants. Dine Out Boston is back Aug. 1–15 with prix fixe menus that make trying somewhere new a whole lot easier. From Asian fusion and Caribbean to Middle Eastern and beyond, your next favorite restaurant is probably already on the list. Make a reservation and branch out. 

🎓 Coming soon: Three-year college degrees! Both Merrimack College and Suffolk University are rolling out three-year bachelor’s programs starting fall 2027, a HUGE first for Mass. To explain: These would only require ~90 credits to graduate instead of the usual ~120. But higher ed commish Noé Ortega said this isn’t to overshadow community colleges. It’s about seeing more students who are first-gen or going back to school, and giving more affordable education options (in both time and money). 

🚇 Mass. is apparently the new poster child for free public transit. So much so that Sen. Ed Markey and Rep. Ayanna Pressley just proposed the “Freedom to Move Act,” which would spend at least $25 *billion* over the next five years to make transit fare-free nationwide (they literally pointed to the success of our free bus pilots and regional transit as examples). They argue that free fares = more money for goods = thriving economy = giving money back to residents. We’ll see if the Republican-heavy Congress bites lol …

😬 Mass.’ infrastructure report card isn’t making the fridge … Our grade: D+. Oops! A new report found that our transit, roads, bridges, and dams are all too old. And since a lot of our infrastructure was built decades ago, experts say it all needs to be repaired and replaced, especially with climate change taking a toll on our current systems (tbt to that February blizzard). But but but … it would take *billions* to fix, including $24.5 billion for the MBTA alone. Soooo we need some major $$$ STAT.

💔 Another L: Mass. is no longer a top 10 state … We were ranked No. 11 this year by U.S. News & World Report, falling two steps from last year. The overall ranking measures states across eight categories (including infrastructure lol), BUT we still held second place for healthcare and fourth for both crime and natural environment. Our lowest score? Opportunity (think: affordability, economic equality), where we placed No. 41. We guess New Hampshire and Vermont will hold down the fort repping New England in the top 10. 

City Hall weddings just got a pup-grade! Your furbaby can now get a certificate from City Hall when you get married. And you can actually thank us for this one. ;) 

Long story short: We made this video two years ago about bringing your dog to your City Hall wedding. And city officials said soooo many couples started doing it afterward that they created a new pet certificate program that welcomes the animal into their union. Think of it as them being unofficial witnesses — since, ya know, you technically don’t need any witnesses to get married in Mass.

So last week, we attended the wedding of Mariana and Brian Altman and saw their doggo, Bono, receive the city’s first “Paw of Approval” certificate. It declares him as a true “Pawstonian,” and even has a seal for the “City of Boston Department of Cuddles, Office of Scratches and Pets.” <3

— Written by Kelly Chan and Emily Schario

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